Learning Hebrew: the questions people ask first

Answered by the teachers of the Israeli Hebrew Institute, in plain sentences.

What is the best way to learn Hebrew as an adult?

The fastest route for an adult is speaking from the first lesson with a native teacher who corrects you in real time, with grammar added in small doses as you need it. Apps and flashcards are useful for vocabulary, but conversation is a skill you only build by having conversations. At the Israeli Hebrew Institute lessons are one on one, online, and built around speaking from day one.

What is the difference between Israeli Hebrew and biblical Hebrew?

Modern Israeli Hebrew is the everyday language of about nine million people in Israel: the Hebrew of the street, the news, WhatsApp and work. Biblical Hebrew is the language of the Hebrew Bible; it shares the alphabet and much of the vocabulary, but its grammar, pronunciation and idiom are different, and it is not spoken. If your goal is to talk with Israelis, learn modern Israeli Hebrew. The Israeli Hebrew Institute teaches only modern spoken Hebrew.

How long does it take to learn Hebrew?

It depends on how often you speak. Students who take one lesson a week and practise a little every day are usually holding simple conversations within a few months, and feeling at ease in everyday situations after about a year. Hebrew has a small core: the few hundred most common words cover most of daily speech, which is why the institute's method starts with those words and the sentences Israelis actually say with them.

Is Hebrew hard for English speakers?

Hebrew is different rather than hard. The alphabet takes a week or two, the root system means you recognise families of words quickly, and the grammar has fewer tenses than English. The parts that trip English speakers up are word order, gender agreement and the sounds that English does not have, and those are exactly what a teacher hears and fixes in a conversation.

Do I need to learn the Hebrew alphabet before I start speaking?

No. You can start speaking Hebrew on day one with transliteration and learn the alphabet alongside it. Reading comes faster once the words already sound familiar. The institute's daily word is always shown in Hebrew with its vowel points, in transliteration and in English, so you can follow whichever you are ready for.

What are nikud, and do Israelis use them?

Nikud (niqqud) are the vowel points written under and inside Hebrew letters. Israelis do not use them in everyday writing; adults read without them. Learners need them at the start to know how a word sounds, which is why every word the Israeli Hebrew Institute publishes carries full nikud, and the slang track deliberately does not, because slang is never written with them.

Can I learn Hebrew online with a real teacher?

Yes. The Israeli Hebrew Institute teaches modern spoken Israeli Hebrew online through Dochi, its daily speaking app: one task every weekday morning, answered out loud, then a native Israeli teacher's answer to the same task. The Community plan adds a weekly group of three on Zoom and a live weekly session with the teacher. The free first steps are the daily word on WhatsApp and the beginners course on YouTube.

Is a Hebrew app enough to learn to speak?

Most apps are a good way to learn words and to keep a habit, and a poor way to learn to speak, because you tap instead of talking. Speaking needs you to say Hebrew out loud and to hear how a real speaker would say it. That is why the institute's own app, Dochi, ends every task with your voice and a teacher's recorded answer, never a machine's score; for conversation, add people, such as a weekly practice group.

What is the Hebrew word of the day?

The Israeli Hebrew Institute publishes one Hebrew word every posting day: the word with its vowel points, its transliteration, its meaning, a real sentence Israelis say with it, the mistake English speakers make with it, and a quiz. It goes out on Instagram, Facebook and TikTok, by WhatsApp, and stays on this site as a page you can come back to.

What is street Hebrew, and should beginners learn slang?

Street Hebrew is the Hebrew Israelis actually speak: short words, slang, Arabic loanwords like walla and sababa, and the tone that changes their meaning. Beginners should learn a little of it early, because it is what they will hear first in a cafe or a taxi; the institute's method is grammar first in small doses, then street Hebrew and slang, because the short way is actually the long way.

How do Israelis really say 'of' in Hebrew?

With the word שֶׁל (shel). Hebrew puts the owner after the thing: הַסֵּפֶר שֶׁל דָּנִי (hasefer shel Dani), literally 'the book of Danny'. The possessive suffixes you may see in a textbook (סִפְרוֹ, sifro) belong to formal and written Hebrew; in conversation Israelis use shel almost every time.

How is the Israeli Hebrew Institute different from an ulpan?

An ulpan is a classroom course, usually in a group and on a fixed schedule; it is good for immersion if you live in Israel. The Israeli Hebrew Institute is online and daily: through its app, Dochi, you speak a little Hebrew every weekday at the time that suits you, wherever you live, and hear a native teacher's answer. Many students come to the institute after an ulpan, able to read but not yet to hold a conversation.

Where do the institute's students come from?

Mostly the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom and Australia, and some from Israel: partners of Israelis, people preparing for conversion, olim who finished an ulpan and still cannot hold a conversation, people planning a trip or a move, and people who simply want to speak with their Israeli family.

How can I try the Israeli Hebrew Institute for free?

Follow the free Hebrew word of the day on Instagram, Facebook or TikTok, or join the free WhatsApp daily-word list. There is no cost for any of these and no card is asked for.